Slaps, dunnit?
This thing is great, have tan it quite a bit already. Here’s phenomenal show, mates.
The Personal Clothing System or PCS is the 2010s refresh of the British Armed Forces combat uniform, developed during the PECOC trials along with many other experimental garments. With it came a lot of technical upgrades, and the final retirement of the UK's beloved Disruptive Pattern Material. And there was a big emphasis on tech.
Enter the thermal "smock". It's also referred to as an anorak, but in Freedom-land, it's called soccer a jacket. It features a unique large zipped upper chest pocket, and another large lower pass-through pocket with zippers on either side. It's a fantastic everyday mid-layer thanks to it's fantastic ventilation, poly ripstop shell, and light fleece lining.
A great feature of this jacket is the ability to control your body temperature with ease. Nearly the entire side of the jacket unzips with armpit zippers and side zips to vent excess heat, and the pockets also act as vents. Simply zip up when you're cold, and unzip when you're hot.
Lastly, it features a minimalist hood that can be tucked into the collar, so it's comfortable as an outer layer, but won't get your neck tangled up when wearing a shell/extra layer on top.
Sizing
The PCS Jacket is designed to be worn right after your baselayer, and as such has a tight fit. The British decided to also size these even smaller for some reason, and we've translated their NATO sizes to their true fit US sizes.
Condition
Unissued: Anorak has in new condition. May have a name written on the inside tag of the anorak.
Excellent: Anorak has seen only minor use. May have minor blemishes on the outside of the jacket, or writing.
This thing is great, have tan it quite a bit already. Here’s phenomenal show, mates.
I’ve gotten multiple compliments on this thing. It fits a little tight on the midsection (I’m not fat). But I’m sure it’s designed that way to keep it slick. It’s very warm, poly coating is legit abrasive and water protection. Kangaroo pouch with hand warmer pouch is great too. Wish they issued us these in the US.
Sleeve seems slightly short but no problem. It's warm and comfy.
This mid layer is made of thin and lightweight material and is sturdy enough that it can be used stand-alone for light use unlike a straight-up fleece pullover. I like that, along with other features such as the pit zips, anorak pockets, and the long hem zips on the sides. Kommandostore’s sizing is convenient than having to decipher sizes from other countries so order according to your US size.
However some thins to take note with this jacket is that the fleece material that’s being used, while thin and lightweight, may not be sufficient enough for certain climates when employed for static use. It’s more of a mid layer for active high output applications (hence all the zippers).
The material is not stretchy nor does the design include any room for tolerance when putting on and taking off the jacket. You will need to unzip the sides every time and figure out a technique especially to get out of it. What I typically do is unzip the hem all the way and get one arm out first and that opens up room for the rest. Another thing regarding material is the fleece itself. It’s the type that literally sticks on to everything and you’ll be fussing around to make yourself comfortable, pulling the liner or your base layer straight because it rolled/piled up while you were putting it on, but also it also tries to pull your base layer off.
The pit zips are a welcomed feature but the zips are really stiff to the shape but also stiff to move. You’ll be spending some time trying to zip or…